School Psychology (MA/CAGS) Field PlacementS

Students in the MSPP School Psychology Program are in field placements each semester of full-time enrollment.  These include a 10 hour per week practicum in an elementary school setting in the first year, a 15 hour per week practicum in a secondary school setting in the second year, and a full-time internship in the third and final year.  In addition, first year students receive a unique and valuable introduction to clinical work by serving as “child associates” in Primary Project, an empirically-validated preventative mental health program.  Child associates meet weekly with primary grade students who are at risk for adjustment problems for individual child-led play sessions.  These field placements are designed to be of value for both the trainee and the host school district.  They are an indispensable feature of graduate training at MSPP: which features the integration of formal instruction with related field work.

MSPP establishes ongoing relationships, or partnerships, with schools and school districts that offer practicum placements consistent with MSPP School Psychology Program standards.  First and second year practicum placements are arranged or facilitated for students.  Alternatively, students may choose to apply competitively for second year practicum placements that are not exclusive to a given training program, or may investigate prospective new sites.  Placements initiated by students, however, must be reviewed by the School Psychology Program's field placement supervisor and determined to meet program standards (e.g., the opportunity to practice skills association with concurrent coursework, the required amount of field supervision).

Students apply competitively for internships, the culminating field experience.  An internship must meet standards of the National Association of School Psychologists.  Three critical requirements are (1) a minimum of 1200 hours, or which at least 600 must be in a school setting, (2) opportunities to provide a broad range of services that address most of the NASP domains of practice, and, (3) two or more hours of field-based supervision per week from a certified school psychologist with at least three years of experience.

Under certain circumstances it may be possible for M.A. students who are employed in the field to use their current workplaces as their field placement sites. However, every such potential arrangement must first be reviewed and approved by the Program Administration and Field Placement Office to ensure that it meets programmatic expectations and pre-licensure field training requirements.

Updated 11/27/07